Ecologically improved process of protecting certain crops from damage by soil-inhabiting insect pests and product produced thereby

A process of protecting certain crops from damage by soil-inhabiting insect pests and product produced thereby are disclosed in which seed or seedlings are coated with a plant extract having a natural feeding deterrency of predetermined efficacy to such insect pests and which has no appreciable phytotoxicity to the seeds or seedlings. More specifically, such seeds or at least the below-ground portions of seedlings are coated with an extract from a plant selected from the group consisting of butterfly milkweed, English ivy, santolina, bergamot, clary and swamp milkweed.